Lifeboat Foundation

The Elektrizitätswerk Zürich (EWZ) sees the construction of solar plants in the high alpine regions of Switzerland as a secure mainstay. The utility is planning another solar plant on the dam wall of a hydroelectric power plant high up in the mountains. The company plans to install more than 1,000 solar modules with an output of 350 kilowatts on the 690-metre-long dam wall of Lago di Lei in Graubünden. The system will cover the dam wall over a length of 550 metres and, once completed, will supply around 380 megawatt hours of electricity each year.

This is already the second installation of this kind to be completed by the EWZ. The first is at the dam of Lake Albigna, also in the canton of Graubünden. This plant has been in operation for a year and has fully met the expectations of the EWZ, so that the forecasts for the new plant are also good. As there, the electricity at Lago di Lei, directly on the border with Italy, will also be fed in via the grid connection of the associated hydroelectric plant of the Hinterrhein power station (KHR). “This makes optimal use of the existing infrastructure to make a further contribution to electricity production from solar energy,” emphasises Guido Conrad, director of the CHR.

Dwarf starburst galaxy Henize 2–10 sparkles with young stars in this Hubble visible-light image. The bright region at the center, surrounded by pink clouds and dark dust lanes, indicates the location of the galaxy’s massive black hole and active stellar nurseries. Credit: NASA, ESA, Zachary Schutte (XGI), Amy Reines (XGI); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

Black holes are often described as the monsters of the universe—tearing apart stars, consuming anything that comes too close, and holding light captive. Detailed evidence from NASA

Established in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government that succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). It is responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. It’s vision is “To discover and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity.”

And it’s topped with a glass-bottomed infinity pool, no less.

Space anemia is more serious than we thought.

Being in space causes the human body to destroy about 50% more red blood cells, leading to a potentially dangerous condition known as anemia. The effects persist even after astronauts return to Earth, according to a new study.

The study, led by researchers at the Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada, analyzed breath and blood samples of 14 astronauts before, during, and after their six-month missions aboard the International Space Station. The researchers found that the astronaut’s bodies destroyed about 54% more red blood cells than they would on Earth.

TALLAHASSEE, Florida — A London patient, Steve Verze, became the first to use a 3D-printed prosthetic eye in November 2021. Its advancements in aesthetics, durability and production process allude to an auspicious future for prosthetics. Yet, developing countries struggle regarding prosthetic accessibility and affordability. Losing a limb or organ in poverty is extremely impactful since access to prosthetic devices or assistance is rare.

A 3D Difference

Steve Verze made history by replacing his acrylic eye with a 3D-printed prosthetic. Since he was 20 years old, he has worn a prosthetic and expressed that he was always self-conscious wearing it. The difference between his previous eye and the 3D counterpart is wider than expected. Traditional prosthetic eyes take six weeks to finish due to hand painting acrylic. The 3D printing prosthetic takes two to three weeks in comparison. Acrylic eyes require an anesthetic for children due to the challenge of molding them to the eye socket. The 3D eye only uses digital scans and “is a true biomimetic and a more realistic prosthetic, with clearer definition and a real depth to the pupil.” The world’s first 3D-printed prosthetic eye shows advancements that expand the possibilities of prosthetics forever.

In our first episode of John Michael Godier’s Event Horizon, we discuss the possibility of Alien civilizations moving to Galaxy Clusters to make the best use of mass and energy, why making copies of ourselves may be the key to interstellar travel and colonization, the habitability of planets around red dwarf stars such as Proxima Centauri, Black Holes, and so much more with our first guest Harvard Theoretical Physicist Dr. Avi Loeb, the Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science at Harvard University.

Is Oumuamua a Light Sail? With Avi Loeb: https://youtu.be/VlpVIyBCG3s.

Continue reading “Why The Universe May Be Full Of Alien Civilizations Featuring Dr. Avi Loeb” »

German carmaker BMW has demonstrated the use of electrophoretic technology, enabling a vehicle’s surface to rapidly change colour. The futuristic concept has potential for a number of interior and exterior applications.

For the past decade, AI has been quietly seeping into daily life, from facial recognition to digital assistants like Siri or Alexa. These largely unregulated uses of AI are highly lucrative for those who control them but are already causing real-world harms to those who are subjected to them: false arrests; health care discrimination; and a rise in pervasive surveillance that, in the case of policing, can disproportionately affect Black people and disadvantaged socioeconomic groups.

Gebru is a leading figure in a constellation of scholars, activists, regulators, and technologists collaborating to reshape ideas about what AI is and what it should be. Some of her fellow travelers remain in Big Tech, mobilizing those insights to push companies toward AI that is more ethical. Others, making policy on both sides of the Atlantic, are preparing new rules to set clearer limits on the companies benefiting most from automated abuses of power. Gebru herself is seeking to push the AI world beyond the binary of asking whether systems are biased and to instead focus on power: who’s building AI, who benefits from it, and who gets to decide what its future looks like.

Full Story:

Continue reading “Why Timnit Gebru Isn’t Waiting for Big Tech to Fix AI’s Problems” »

And they can detach while still in motion.

Three former SpaceX engineers launched a company to develop autonomous battery-electric trains that they believe can help to improve the efficiency and emissions of railroads, a press statement reveals.

Continue reading “Three Former SpaceX Engineers Are Designing New, Ultra-Efficient Autonomous Trains” »